Angie Bailey

Transcript

so you want to be a starving artist I was stunned to hear my father say these words the one who always had Big Dreams and raised me and my sisters to be independent and go after ours instantly that powerful inner voice guiding me towards my dream of becoming an artist was silenced I grew up in the typical loud Italian family I'd speak up as much as possible possible but slowly over time I began to say less and less my sisters were older than me and busy my parents were working and off and gone and I'd sit alone at home with my Nona in silence I

was passionate about the Arts it was my opportunity to fully express myself and feel seen But at my mother's urging I took the much more sensible path of nursing my voice has really been trapped since nursing school and little by little I've been trying to regain it last fall I had the chance to do a two-minute passion speed share at the Grand Slam I had it memorized and I was so excited until the self-doubt began to creep in and that little voice in my head said you can't do that my name was called so I got up I began to speak and almost instantly my

words disappeared from me I couldn't breathe I tried to begin again then I froze finally I said this isn't going to happen congratulations to all the amazing speakers and then the crowd began to clap and then they cheered and then they Rose to their feet in support it's like when when a loving parent encourages a young child who's learning to walk to get up again and again it really gred me and then I said I'll be back speaker slam so here I am so then I took my seat and uh was tried to regain my composure my thoughts teetering between trying to listen to the

speakers trying to figure out what ju had just happened when my phone lit up you were amazing and have so much to be proud of the passion in you and those pauses though you may have felt difficult to us was so powerful you gave us all a preview of a deep powerful talk that is coming I'm at home watching and you gave me chills so proud of you and two hard emojis this beautiful message from a young gentleman I'd met at the previous Grand Slam I tried to keep it together but a lump formed in my throat and then I took my seat during the

break then we had a break yes during the break I had so many people in the community approached me saying How brave I was to take the state and at the end of the night I had butterflies in my stomach and my thoughts were going between self-judgment and criticism I just had this whole negativity with myself and I was sitting next to Donald Carr an icon in the speaker slamp Community is Donald here Donald no Donald anyhow Donald was sitting next to me and I heard him sniffling next to me and then I felt his hand on mine as I turned to him his he

had tears in his eyes and he said to me I'm crying for you the tears you are not able to express for yourself I've never felt so loved and supported in my entire life and I love you Donald wherever you are afterwards for weeks I received so many messages from people in the Comm Community giving me encouragement love support kindness and advice facing challenges and adversity is one of our shared human experiences one of the greatest gifts we can give is our love and support we just never know how impactful that might be after 32 years in nursing I have retired and I'm now living

my dream bringing the Arts and calligraphy to nurses and support workers who so desperately need to distress and find calm day by day I feel called to speak and share my heart that night at speaker slam on that stage was a pivotal part of my journey the human connection that nurtured and protected me afterwards was healing and tonight as this comes full circle I can finally say thank you thank you for loving me thank you for seeing me and thank you for giving me back my

Transcript generated from the recording and lightly cleaned. Some names and wording may differ from the spoken speech.

Transcript

That was me 5 years ago, desperately looking for a way to reduce stress by trying to learn meditation. As an OR nurse of 32 years, I know a thing or two about stress. I'm Angie Bailey, RN, calming calligraphy practitioner, known in some circles as the singing nurse. Don't let my singing fool you, though. In fact, if you see a cheerful nurse, don't think for 1 minute they are not stressed out to the max. According to a survey of Canadian nurses by the RNAO, nurses have reached their limit.

More than 75% of respondents are burned out. 69% plan to leave their positions within 5 years. And 42% plan to leave the profession entirely. Nurses are the backbone of healthcare. If they're worn out, how can they care for others? If they continue to leave the profession in droves, who will take care of us? This is where I come in. After struggling to learn meditation, I stumbled upon calligraphy as a most effective way to practice mindfulness. Now, I help nurses relieve stress with calming calligraphy so they can feel rejuvenated in their work and life without having to sit down into a pretzel.

After facilitating dozens of workshops, I have seen the effects that this practice has had among participants. Nurses are notorious for looking after everyone else's needs above their own. I have put on my own oxygen mask, and now I'm holding one up for all the other nurses. It's time to script a new path forward for nurses. Thank you.

Transcript generated from the recording and lightly cleaned. Some names and wording may differ from the spoken speech.